Our mental and emotional health governs all other bodily functions and processes, making it of upmost importance to living a healthy, happy life.

Various studies have shown that regular yoga practise reduces and improves a person’s levels of stress, depression, anxiety, energy levels and fatigue. It helps with the release of chemicals in the body and brain which promote strength and well being.

One of the main objectives of yoga as a therapy is to bring about emotional self-control. We can sometimes be overcome by our emotions, which in turn de-stabilises the nervous system and causes us to lose clarity and control over ourselves. Yoga postures help boost oxygen and blood flow around the body, taking care of the body and organ functioning. Together with breath and balancing techniques, yoga will improve the cognitive functions of the brain, calming the mind and allowing a clearer, different perspective.

The further physical benefits of relieving stiffness, aches and pains also allow a person to feel much more relaxed which contributes to more positive mental and emotional attitude. With practice, we can more successfully control our emotional responses and proactively influence our own lives.

Yoga classes will help facilitate personal growth, a person’s sense of purpose, self acceptance through self-awareness and aid the discovery of a strength to influence one’s own situation in life. As well as the direct physical and psychological benefits, yoga classes bring an opportunity for people to socialise on a regular basis. By encouraging social interaction, boosting confidence and self-esteem the people attending will be able to enhance their relationships, both with themselves and others around them.

Carolina Smilas

Carolina will be running yoga classes with residents of a mental healthcare facility, funded by TransmissionUK. 

Gift tag 07 was bought by a guy who wanted to buy his parents something unique as a Xmas present. He said he had put together a little hamper but on the bow he was going to tie the tag to really make the gift a special one.

We hope his parents love the wrapping of the gift as much as the special person is who will recieve this amazing donation for a treatment. With each Gift ID bought it enables someone with a life limiting / life threatening condition to recieve a complementary therapy that will benefit them. And through our special Gift ID tracker we will be able to notify the parents who received this generous gift on their behalf.

Thank you.

It was an incredibly eye-opening experience, encouraging each one of us to think about how we personally perceived these issues and allowing us to learn from one another. One of the issues brought up was the portrayal of mental health in the media and the affects that this has on anyone with a mental illness. I have always been impressed by the positive media coverage which has been brought to my attention by events such as the Mind Media Awards. However, on this particular occasion, I found myself furiously writing down my concerns about a negativity that underlies many stories reported in the news. I have no experience of personally coping with a mental illness and I imagine that, at this moment in time, I was influenced by discussions I had had with people who had dealt with a lot of negativity once they had opening up about their mental illness. But, I have observed that mental health issues are often brought up in stories about anti-social behaviour, with very little explanation or evidence to support it, and my feeling is that amongst the general public this may induce a “fear of the unknown”.

There are some great articles and opinions about mental health from those who are affected by it throughout the media and there are also an increasing number of celebrities speaking out about their experiences of mental illness which makes for incredibly interesting and insightful reading. However I believe these are only read by those who seek them out. For anyone without an interest in mental health, the lack of information about mental health means that the image conveyed in the media remains too negative.

I think this is best highlighted by an example. A recent story in the news about Kristy Bamu, an 8-year-old boy who was killed by his sister and her boyfriend because they thought he was a witch. Admitting his part in the murder, the boyfriend mentioned that he has mental health issues which affected his actions. Yet another example of someone overlooked by our social care system perhaps, but this is never really mentioned in the initial news story.  There are cases of anti-social behaviour reported regularly in the press and mental illness can often be alluded to as a reason behind a person’s actions. However, it is a statement that is often left hanging in the air. Maybe it is mentioned to induce sympathy or offer an explanation for someone’s actions. This can not be achieved by one off-hand sentence however and it leaves me feeling uncomfortable with the possibility that anyone open about their mental illness would then be associated with stories such as the one mentioned above.

We all know that press coverage of events both reflects public opinion and influences it. Maybe I am judging members of the public too harshly and they can look beyond the association of mental illness with people who cause harm to themselves or others, especially if there is no evidence of it. If they don’t however, negative perceptions about mental illness will remain and those who are coping with them will continue to feel judged if they are honest about their condition.

There is so much amazing work being done by charities and other mental health organisations, with the help of some media organisations, to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health and mental illness. I hope that this attitude will eventually spill into every aspect of the press and people are encouraged to suspend judgements about people with mental health conditions.

Rebecca Neale

Sarah has been attending Sensory Art Workshops with one of our therapists Victoria Bampfield-Hammond. Victoria works with individuals with autism in Cornwall and has recently been featured in Disability Cornwall’s magazine Discover. The workshops are usually on a one-to-one basis although sometimes she works with two or three people together in their homes. Victoria has six years of experience to draw upon and the sessions are specifically tailored to the needs of each individual to encourage well-being and personal development.

Getting this feedback from people such as Sarah, who would be unable to afford the treatment if TUK CIC/HealingUK did not fund it, helps us know that as long as we keep providing these treatments, we are having a positive affect on someone’s health and well being.

What an incredibly reassuring way to start off 2012! We are expecting big things this year as the TUK Store takes off and our fundraisers continue to bring in money from the general public. The success of the fundraising campaign and the profits from the Store will ensure that society profits as TUK will be able to increase the number of therapies provided to individuals who need them and also help HealingUK grow.

If you wish to read more about Victoria’s work you can read about her work here or in Discover. The workshops she runs are making a real difference to the people of Cornwall and we are hoping to increase the amount of funding we are providing to her.

If you wish to help us achieve this and are interested in making a donation, you can do so through the website or over the telephone.

Faith Kompaniyets has cerebral palsy and received a complementary therapy from Devon Burke (pictured left). Her mother, Irene, speaks about the experience:

“My daughter has cerebral palsy which makes her muscles very tense and prevents her from walking and standing properly. Devon forged a close and very caring relationship with Faith very quickly and his massage really has helped with loosening the tightness of muscles enabling her walking speed to improve a lot. He has also given me some great advice and been wonderful support to us. The therapy has been an enormous help to my daughter and a joy to watch.”

We will be following Faith and Irene as the treatment continues and keep you up to date with their progress.

Each complementary therapy session is a real gift and we are so grateful for people like Garry who came into the TUK Store and purchased one of our gift tags.

If you are interested in donating a complementary therapy, please get in touch with us or, if you’re in the area, come in to the TUK Store at 47 Rivington Street, Shoreditch EC2A 3QB.

Great news! Our first Gift ID has been purchased by a girl called Hannah Bain. The Gift was bought for her as a birthday present from her friends. We think this is such a lovely idea!

Please be patient whilst it finds its way to someone who will benefit from this life changing treatment and stay tuned to see who that person will be and how the complementary therapy has helped them.

Thank you.

How do I track my Gift ID?

After purchasing a gift tag from the TUK store you can see who your donation has benefitted by following the number on your tag here. We ensure every gift tag donation goes towards a complementary therapy for someone with life limiting/ life threatening conditions and would like our customers to know just how life-changing these therapies can be through a personal response from the beneficiary.

When will I be able to see my Gift ID?

We ensure that each Gift ID is recieved within 1 month after purchase, however there might sometimes be a delay in receiving testimonials or image from our therapists. If you are worried that its been a long time then please do contact us at info@tukcic.org.

How much of the money I donated contributes to the cost of the therapy?

100% of each Gift ID goes towards funding a complementary treatment.

It is the grand opening of the TUK Store this Friday and we have some beautiful, individual pieces in stock for Christmas.

However, customers will be able to purchase more than clothing, jewellery or works of art. Also on sale will be TUKcic Complementary Treatment Gift Tags which can be bought for your loved ones for just £25.

As anyone familiar with us will know, TUKcic funds qualified complementary therapists to work with disadvantaged individuals throughout the UK. The TUK Store has been established to help TUKcic realise their vision of providing free complementary healthcare for all. Every individual that comes to us for help would benefit from long-term care and the profits made in the TUK store will ensure that this is a real possibility.

By purchasing a TUKcic gift tag, customers will provide access to one session of complementary therapy for an individual with a life-limiting or lift-threatening condition. They can be bought for yourself or as a gift for someone else. The recipient of the tag will be able to see how the money has been used by following the progress of the individual whose therapy they funded on our website.

For more information, please get in touch. Or just come in store and speak to us.

The TUK Store will be opening at 9am on Friday 2nd December.

This is TUKcic’s first step into the business side of being a Social Enterprise and everybody has been working so hard to ensure that it will be a rip-roaring success. We have got some amazing stock in from local clothes and jewellery designers, artists and photographers that are so beautiful that there is no real doubt that they will sell. What needs to be conveyed however, is the message that TUKcic is a Social Enterprise and that the reason, the motivation, the very core of the TUK Store, is to provide money for complementary therapies for disadvantaged individuals throughout the UK.

In recent weeks we have had some very encouraging chats with organisations that provide support for Social Enterprise who are really excited about what we are doing. This is, of course, amazing for hear. However, the one point that has transpired over and over again is how best to emphasise that the money from every purchase in store is going to a good cause, whilst staying away from looking like a charity shop. Not that there is anything wrong with charity shops (!). It’s just that what we are doing with the TUK Store is something entirely different.

We want to encourage customers to buy from us not just because of the product, but because of where the profits are going. We want people to understand that by buying from us, many individuals who are coping with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions will be able to access treatments that improve their quality of life.

As I have mentioned in a previous post, we hope to play our part in the recent campaign launched by Social Enterprise UK called ‘Society Profits’. The message is a simple one. That buying from a value-driven business ensures that society benefits in some way. It’s just how to ensure that every person that walks through the TUK Store door realises this, without it being oppressive or inducing a guilt which will put them off coming back.

In her post on the Guardian Social Enterprise Network June O’Sullivan says that ‘social change occurs when people alter their daily habits.’ If we can encourage the people of Shoreditch to buy contemporary, designer pieces from the TUK Store and help fund complementary healthcare treatments then maybe this is one of the first steps in influencing consumers to think about where they shop. Not just for those one-off pieces of clothing or art, but for their entire wardrobes, household goods and groceries.

Off to the drawing board we go…